​A copywriter is a professional writer that will write your marketing material (whether that be for your website, blog posts, brochures, social media marketing, enewsletters, media releases, adverts and a whole range of things). A copywriter is an expert in writing and will pen persuasive words in a way that is potent for your marketing plan.

Why hire a copywriter?

This is me being a copywriter!

I’m going to be straight up here: almost everybody thinks they can write. This isn’t the truth. Let’s get real about this so you don’t do your business a disservice. An exceptional copywriter can position your business, services and products as memorable and leading the way, outshining your competitors and as something that people just MUST HAVE. With the art of the persuasive word, professionally written copy can increase sales.

The beauty of a copywriter is that they are able to step back from you and see the best in what you offer and know how to tell the world about it. Often, you can be too close to your own offerings to effectively describe what you do.

An awesome copywriter can make anything – and everything – sound thrilling.

Perhaps best of all, in my view, a copywriter will write with great grammar and spelling, giving you more credibility and readability. If the first contact new customers have with you is a poorly written website or Facebook page, how can they expect you to be professional when delivering your services? Go on – choose three websites at random and you will easily be able to tell which has been professionally written and which has been written in haste by the business owner.

Although this may not be the case for all copywriters (and is certainly not a requirement), I am also an award winning creative writer (having written many short stories, poems and a novel), so the art of storytelling is in my veins. And as customers become more and more saturated by content these days, they are craving authenticity and genuine storytelling. See also: how to keep your content crispy.

Most of what we are commissioned to write is written to sell. We believe in and live the “art of the sell” using only so much as our words.

When I write an advertisement, I don’t want you to tell me that you find it “creative”. I want you to find it so interesting that you buy the product,’ David Ogilvy.

The process

This may vary mildly depending on what you want written but the most likely process will go like this:

You will contact me because you have seen my website, my social media platforms or heard about me from someone you trust.

I will exchange an email or phone call with you to get an overview of what you are after and the timeframe you’re looking at (hint: if you need something within 24 hours I will most likely refer you on as I am often booked out in advance).

Then I will probably send you an email with a copywriting brief that I need filled out, which determines what you require, what your business does and what your competitors are doing. A brief is not always required and I might opt to directly send you a formal quote so you know what budget you’ll need and how long it will take.

These days, I quote per project rather than quoting per hour. This can work out more cost effective for you as the client and save me having to record every single minute that I work on your project. You'll also know how much you’re going to pay upfront. You’re also paying for my experience, knowledge, writing acumen, skills and ability to speak to the customer’s psyche – not just for my time.

Once you’ve approved the quote, I get to work! This is the point where I’ll request more information if required. This can take the form of (but not always required):

phone/in person interview, particularly for more technical industries

branding/style guide (if you have one)

any notes or research you may have previously compiled

links to useful websites, including your competitors or industry bodies/associations

Then you can relax as I squirrel away for a time and work on the copy to the deadline we’ve agreed upon. This is the “go time” for me and where I spend hours researching, taking notes, writing and rewriting, proofreading and editing and maybe, just maybe, watching Netflix (some of my best ideas have come from television shows!)

​Deadline day!

You’ll be emailed the work (usually in a Word document) to review. I offer a revision with all quotes but I rarely, if ever, have to do it but I want you to know that the option is there because there’s no point with you being unhappy with the copy.

Then you can do whatever you need to do with the writing – upload it to your website, email merger, letterhead, social media platforms. It's then time to enjoy the benefits of meticulously crafted copy.

Now be honest, that was a lot less painful than you thought, right? Certainly a lot less painful than agonising for weeks or months over writing your homepage or blog posts. There we have it – the mysteries of working with a copywriter solved! If you have any more questions, drop a comment below or send me an email.

‘Let us prove to the world that good taste, good art, and good writing can be good selling,’ William Bernbach.